Creating a steady stream of high-quality, compelling content for your website is a crucial part of establishing yourself as an expert in your field, maintaining brand consistency and providing your visitors with informative, entertaining and inspirational material.
But once you’ve posted a new blog post, linked to it via social media and it’s run its course of shares, likes and comments, is there any future for that content or is it destined to sit forever in the dusty recesses of your blog archive?
After all the time, effort and money spent on creating it in the first place, it seems a shame not to look to repurpose it usefully in some way. Here, we look at a few ways in which you can do this.
White papers
A white paper is a reference document which serves as an information guide for the reader. They should be expertly designed, easy to read and often contain industry-related material. But although they may contain facts and figures, too many are overpowering – more important is that the facts they do contain are clear, pertinent and memorable.
A well-written blog post can usually be crafted into a white paper without too much difficulty and with consistent branding and tone of voice, you can soon have a library of white papers at your disposal.
Ebooks
If you have enough of them, your blog posts might prove to be ideal material for an ebook, or even a printed book. Although there will be editorial and design work involved, much of your content will already be in place, and could provide you with an extra, ongoing revenue stream, as well as increased authority in your industry.
A professional ebook designer need not be expensive and will ensure that your book looks great and functions perfectly.
Infographics
Infographics have proved hugely popular to businesses in recent years and rightly so – when planned and designed correctly, they can distil and communicate data in a highly visual and easy-to-understand way, as well as being greatly shareable.
If your blog posts are information-led, they might be well-suited to the infographic treatment.
Slideshows
Creating a slideshow from your blogpost is an easy way to add extra value and by uploading to SlideShare or a similar site, you can reach a different audience and perhaps even attract some new followers.
Your slideshows can be included on your website, giving your regular visitors a different format in which to access your content. You could even add a voiceover, explaining your thought process or the ideas behind the concept or product.
Audio and video
Making a video of yourself or a member of your team has never been easier, and your existing blog posts give you an easy place to start. Whether you choose to interview somebody about the points raised in the post or demonstrate some of the processes or concepts covered, adding an extra visual element can really bring your content to life and encourage discussion and social sharing anew.
Make sure that you add your videos to YouTube or Vimeo as well as finding a home for them on your own site for best effect.
Transcriptions
If your content is in audio or video form, providing a typed transcript can add plenty of extra value and turn a simple podcast or webinar into a deeper resource.
Not only does having a transcript help with SEO by enabling search engines to understand what your content is about, it also provides greater choice to your visitors, allowing them to interact with your material in the way that suits them best, and giving them search options and so on.
Conclusion
Any of the above repurposed documents could be used in a variety of ways on your website. The most common are a) as a ‘free’ giveaway (not so much free as in exchange for an email address to be added to a mailing list) and b) as part of a resource library within your site. Either of these methods add authenticity and professionalism to your website, and best of all, your resources have all been recycled!
Of course, it’s important to be aware that repurposing your old content doesn’t mean copying it elsewhere. Not only will search engines possibly frown at this, your visitors won’t thank you for needless repetition. By using the above methods, you can ensure that your repurposing is not just making good use of high-quality material, saving you time and money, but also providing even greater resources for your website visitors.
Have you used any unusual or unique ways to recycle your own content?